Introduction
to The Silk Road:
The purpose of this project is for students to examine the geographic, economic, political, and religious dimensions of the "Silk Road." Additionally, students will chronicle the spread of technology as well as the spread of dangerous diseases across this transportation network. Students have been assigned very specific topics within their large groups. There are two students each for the geographic, economic, political, and religious aspects of the "Silk Road."
The
beginning of Chinese trade along the Silk Road
Emperor Wu of
the Han dynasty was anxious to forge an alliance with the people of the Great
Yue-chi of central Asia to offer common resistance to the Xiongnu (the Huns),
Emperor Wu sent his general, Zhang Qian to the western region as an envoy
but unfortunately was captured and it took ten years before he returned.
Tales of “heavenly horses” and other discoveries interested the
emperor and more expeditions were sent out, thus opening a direct line of
communication between the interior of China and central Asia.
Later, the Han
Dynasty began to exploit the western regions devoting huge resources of manpower
and materials. The military
strength and administrative organization of the Han dynasty allowed for the
opening of an official post road along the southern and northern fringes of the
Taklimakan desert. The road was
extended beyond the Pamirs and connected up with existing roads in central,
western and southern Asia. Chinese
silk was shipped continuously to the West along these roads, while products from
central and western Asia began to reach the Chinese interior in large
quantities.
At first trade
was probably carried mainly by diplomatic envoys of China and the countries of
central Asia. Later, however, it
became the monopoly of a wide variety of merchants.
·
Trade encouraged the meeting of cultures
and the settlement of foreign minorities.
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Trade brought new ideas, new food,
diverse cultures and religions.
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Trade allowed for a prosperous economy,
the development of major trade centers and the inter-mingling of cultures and
knowledge.
Traders
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The “Hu merchants” (merchants of
non-Han nationalities), were heavily bearded men with deep-set eyes and large
noses who spoke a variety of Iranian dialects.
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Merchants traveled in camel caravans
heavily laden with goods.
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They traveled across the snow-covered
Pamirs, stopped at the oasis of the Tarim Basin, passed through the corridor
west of the Huang He River and over Mount Long before finally arriving at
Chang’an or Louyang.
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They experienced countless natural
dangers, risking their lives along the route.
The round-trip journey took from one to two years.
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They amassed fortunes by shipping silks
to the West which became the economic basis of the prosperity and embellishment
of many famous cities of central and western Asia.
Trade
Routes
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There was no single trade route; traders
crossed Central Asia using several different branches of the Silk Road, passing
through different oasis settlements.
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The routes all started from the capital
in Changan, headed up the Gansu corridor, and reached Dunhuang on the edge of
the Taklimakan desert.
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The northern route passed through Yumen
Guan (Jade Gate Pass) and crossed the Gobi desert to Hami (Kumul), before
following the Tianshan mountains round the northern fringes of the Taklimakan.
It passed through the major oases of Turfan and Kuqa before arriving at
Kashgar.
·
The southern route branched off at
Dunhuang, passing through the Yang Guan and skirting the southern edges of the
desert, via Miran, Hetian, and Shache, finally turning north again to meet the
other route at Kashgar.
·
Numerous other routes were also used to a
lesser extent.
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Kashgar became the new crossroads of
Asia; from here the routes again divided, heading to many different
destinations.
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Merchants had to defend themselves
against bandits and depended on local people to act as guides for the caravans.
Traded
Goods
Many items were
bartered for others along the way, and objects often changed hands several
times. Besides the obvious material
goods that were traded, there was an abundance of cultural, religious, and
philosophical ideas that were exchanged along the Silk Road.
Chinese items sought for trade
·
Silk Trade
Originally, the
Chinese traded silk internally, within the empire.
Once silk was discovered by westerners, they were desperate to obtain the
beautiful cloth that symbolized wealth and stature.
Caravans from China’s interior would carry silk to the western edges of
the region. Often small Central
Asian tribes would attack these caravans hoping to capture the traders’
valuable commodities. As a result,
the Han Dynasty extended its military defenses further into Central Asia from
135 to 90 BC in order to protect these caravans.
Silk trade flourished and led the way for other endless commodities.
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Ironware, gold and platinum, bronze
mirrors
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Ceramics, lacquer and bamboo wares
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Furs
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Medicinal herbs and drugs
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Farming and smelting technology
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Chinese inventions of gunpowder,
papermaking and printing
Western items brought into China for
trade
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Perfumes, ivory, jewels and glassware
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Alfalfa, grapes, sesame, pomegranates,
walnuts cucumbers, carrots
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Lions, peacocks, elephants, camels and
horses
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Wines and spices
Passage from “The West Region: History
of the Han Dynasty, documents the trade between China and foreign countries:
“The emperor’s household was filled with pearls, rhinoceros horns and
peacock feathers. Palace
officials’ stables were crowded with thoroughbred horses.
Elephants, lions, mastiffs and peacocks roam the menagerie.
Exotic articles poured in from every quarter.
Chinese
Currency
Most goods were bartered but the Chinese had many forms of money that was
also used along the Silk Road.
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Knife money
The oldest form
of hard currency in China, and was blade-like in shape. It always had a hole in the middle blade, as well as
hand-carved inscriptions that detailed the coin’s origin and trading value.
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Round Chinese coin with square hole
By: Nancy Konkolewski